


The Art of Silence

by phinflynn (Tox)



Category: Phineas and Ferb
Genre: Fluff, Incest, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:34:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26008858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tox/pseuds/phinflynn
Summary: "The art of silence," Ferb murmured against Phineas’s lips. "When you listen, the world speaks."
Relationships: Ferb Fletcher/Phineas Flynn
Comments: 5
Kudos: 111





	The Art of Silence

**Author's Note:**

> rewrote this old thing from AAAAGES ago. 2012! i'm swinging back into phinferb and a lot of people still read this stupid fic where i have it posted, so figured i'd fix it up. enjoy!

In many ways, they were alike; their intelligence, their love of adventure and creation, their imaginations… things that made them work well as brothers, and also as _lovers_ , when the time came that their relationship changed. There were ways in which they were different as well, yet these differences were welcome, because what relationship was worth it with no challenge? What pair was interesting when they were exactly the same? Their dynamic was perfect for them. After all, _"boring"_ was not a word one could ever use to describe Phineas Flynn and Ferb Fletcher.

As had become somewhat of a tradition on warm Sunday afternoons, the boys were not outside building or adventuring or socializing — rather, they were inside, relaxing comfortably on the taller of their two beds. It was said that on the seventh day, God rested; so too did Danville's smartest young men rest when the end of the week rolled around. They needed some time to themselves, not only to recharge their batteries, but to bask in one another's presence and enjoy the new love they experienced now that they were together.

These peaceful days were anything but _quiet_ , however.

"So I was thinking after school we can head down to the waterpark and check out their new slide," Phineas rambled excitedly as he sat up beside his brother. "I love waterslides, and besides, it might give us a new idea for something of our own! It's been a while since we built something really big - what about another giant one? A waterslide, I mean."

Ferb, who was laying on his back with his hands clasped behind his head, simply looked up at Phineas and said nothing. They made eye contact briefly before Phineas continued in a rush.

"I think it would be great! Remember the slide we made _last_ summer? The one we had to build an elevator for just so we could get to the top? Let's try to outdo it! After all, I'm sure something so awesome would be really appreciated in the middle of the school year. I mean, everyone needs to unwind…"

Phineas went on, eyes darting this way and that as he explained his ideas and gushed about his affections for the various projects they'd done. Ferb continued to watch him in silence, blinking every once in a while and occasionally scratching his nose. This was how it usually was with them. Yet as with all things, changes had to come eventually. Ferb had long ago learned a valuable lesson — when things start getting predictable, alter them.

With no warning, Ferb reached up and put a finger over his brother's lips.

Phineas looked down at Ferb, hands still raised in the middle of some sort of sweeping gesture to demonstrate the size of the invention he was now talking about. He wasn't offended by the sudden shushing; more than anything, he was just surprised. It was very unlike Ferb to quiet him. After all, _he_ was the quiet one. Phineas was a man of words and often spoke freely. Or, well, _always_ spoke freely.

A smile slowly made its way across Phineas's face, and then he gently kissed his brother's finger. "Am I talking too much?" he asked with a small laugh.

Ferb didn't reply. Instead, he moved his hand to Phineas's cheek, and then to the back of his neck, where he applied light pressure. After a moment Phineas realized that he was being asked to lay down. He did as requested, resting his cheek on Ferb’s chest with his body stretched out alongside, deeply enjoying the close contact.

The brief silence didn’t last very long, however.

"You didn't have to shut me up to get me to lay with you," Phineas chuckled. "You know I would have anyway. I mean —"

Again, there was a finger on his lips. Phineas pulled a confused look and stayed perfectly still, wondering why Ferb was suddenly so intent on keeping him quiet, unable to fathom a world wherein his rambling wasn’t appreciated.

"Listen," Ferb said.

The finger was removed, and Phineas relaxed again as his brother set his hand instead on the back of Phineas’s head and held him close. _Listen…_ what was that supposed to mean? What was he even listening _to?_ He supposed it didn't matter. When Ferb made requests of him, it was usually important.

So he listened.

He heard many things; there were cars outside, and Candace was talking somewhere in the house, and a dog barked down the street… but more than any of those things, Phineas could hear Ferb's heartbeat, right up against his ear. It was a deeply calming sound, one he could listen to for hours.

But he still didn't understand why he was doing this.

"Ferb," Phineas muttered, tilting his head away a little so he couldn't be silenced again. "What do you want me to hear? I don't —"

"I don't want you to hear anything," Ferb interrupted, his hand leaving his brother's hair and travelling down his back. "I just want you to listen."

That wasn't a satisfactory answer. Phineas's eyebrows knit together as he lifted himself up and hovered over Ferb, his expression so Candace-like that in that moment Ferb almost wondered if he was in bed with the wrong sibling. (Now _there_ was a thought.)

"Listen to _what?"_ Phineas asked in exasperation. "Are you trying to teach me some deep lesson or something? Is that what we're doing today, freaking _philosophy?_ I just —"

Again, he was silenced. Not with a finger this time — rather, a kiss.

Ferb had propped his body up on one elbow, and was now using his free hand to keep Phineas close as he deepened and intensified the kiss. It wasn’t an attempt at manipulation; it was simply how Ferb preferred to communicate. He was a man of action, after all, drawn to showing his intentions rather than saying them.

When they pulled apart, the annoyance was gone from Phineas's expression, replaced by a dazed sort of adoration. He really enjoyed kissing Ferb, being kissed by Ferb; it reminded him of everything right with what they were doing. He had his doubts, his worries, even as the eternal optimist he was — but Ferb was always quick to stamp those out with such displays of affection. 

"...You just did that to shut me up," Phineas said with a lopsided smile. Ferd smirked back at him, earning him a playful shove back onto the mattress.

They were soon entwined with one another, foreheads pressed together and fingers tangled up in whatever they could get purchase on, fabric or hair or otherwise. There seemed to be no space between them; it was as though they were attempting to become a part of one another, get so close that the heat of their bodies would weld them together. Phineas opened his mouth to make a comment to that effect, then paused and wondered if maybe he should try to just… _listen_ again. Ferb probably knew what he was talking about, after all. He was _Ferb_.

Phineas loosened his half of the embrace and wriggled his way back to Ferb’s chest, pressing his ear to the place over his brother’s heart as he was hugged tightly and held close.

It was so _loud_. And fast, too. Phineas never would have imagined that Ferb's heart actually beat that fast when they were together. He had such a neutral look to him most of the time, always seemed calm… Phineas knew, of course, that Ferb had more to him than what he showed, but this was still just a little bit surprising. Ferb was a man of stoic composure, yet under the surface it seemed he was just as affected as Phineas was by their intimacy. 

Was that what Ferb wanted? For Phineas to notice things that talking nonstop wouldn't show him? Thinking about it, Phineas realized he probably missed a fair number of tiny details like that rather often. He was accustomed to spotting every single insignificant little thing when it came to mathematical equations and engineering — but when it came to other people, he was oblivious. Ferb… probably knew that.

Phineas wondered then just how calm Ferb really was, in retrospect. Ever since their intimate relationship had begun, he had assumed his brother was just… fine with it. Totally unmoved by the fact that someone was so in love with him. Someone he was basically forbidden to be with. He smiled, sure, and seemed happy and in love as well, but he wasn't _nervous_ . He didn't gasp when he was touched, didn't blush when he was kissed… but maybe there were smaller signs. Maybe that's what _listening_ was about.

Curiously, Phineas rested a hand on his brother's waist and trailed his fingers to the curve of his hip bone. There was no visible change, and yet… Ferb's heart sped up just a little. And his breath caught, too; there was no gasp, but there was a brief stillness in his lungs, and a slow exhale after. Phineas moved his hand further along its path, tracing patterns on Ferb’s pelvis, and was delighted to find that Ferb’s breath kept catching, his heart kept pounding in double-time.

How exciting! Phineas found himself grinning as he ceased his ministrations and pulled himself up, pressing his nose against Ferb's. Ferb opened his eyes, having shut them as they lay together, and gave Phineas a level look.

"You're _nervous_ ," Phineas beamed.

Ferb didn't seem surprised by the observation. He smiled back at his brother, then tilted his head and went in for another kiss. As it always did, his heart sped into a race, his stomach twisting with butterflies all the while; yet on the surface, he remained composed. 

"The art of silence," Ferb murmured against Phineas’s lips. "When you listen, the world speaks."

"You're such a dork, Ferb," Phineas teased back at him. Yet he took the advice to heart, grateful for having been granted it. Ferb would know of his gratitude without a word having to pass between them, because Ferb always noticed things; among his many talents, being perceptive was chief among them, and he’d always been good at discerning the feelings of others. Just another thing for Phineas to adore about him. 

Ferb spoke, then, with sudden depth and sincerity: “I love you, Phineas,” he said, looking up at his brother with a sweet smile and expression overflowing with affection. Surprised by the sudden confession, Phineas stared back down at him, then all at once seemed to melt under Ferb’s gaze.

Without a word, Phineas leaned in for another kiss, this one much slower and much more passionate than the last few. 

_I love you too,_ it said.


End file.
